The AP reports: Dwyane Wade had 21 points and 12 assists, Mario Chalmers was 6-for-7 from 3-point range in a 21-point, eight-assist, no-turnover effort, and the Miami Heat dropped LeBron James’ pro record on birthdays to 0-3 by beating the Cleveland Cavaliers 104-95 on Tuesday night… Fittingly, James scored 24 of his game-high 38 points after intermission, almost enough to rally Cleveland from a 16-point deficit—its largest of the season… Daequan Cook scored 17 points—with all five field goals being 3-pointers, meaning he and Chalmers combined to go 11-for-14 from beyond the arc—for the Heat. Shawn Marion (14 points, 11 rebounds) and Udonis Haslem (13 points, 10 rebounds) added double-doubles for Miami… Delonte West scored 20 for Cleveland, which had won six straight, and Mo Williams added 10 for the Cavaliers.
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Players of Week: LeBron, Kobe
The Cleveland Cavaliers’ LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers’ Kobe Bryant today were named the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week, respectively, for games played Monday, Dec. 22, through Sunday, Dec. 28.
James guided the Cavaliers to a 3-0 mark, with home wins over the Rockets, Wizards and Heat, improving Cleveland’s mark at Quicken Loans Arena to 16-0, tops in the NBA. He averaged 26.0 points on 53 percent shooting, while adding 6.7 rebounds and 6.7 assists, as Cleveland improved to 26-4, the best start in franchise history. He finished with 27 points, including 19 in the second half, as Cleveland rallied to defeat Houston. He tallied 11 fourth-quarter points and finished with 33 points and nine assists in a comeback win over Miami.
Bryant led the Lakers to a 4-0 week, averaging 30.0 points on 54 percent shooting, to go with 5.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists. He tallied a game-high 27 points, nine rebounds and five assists, as the Lakers defeated Boston on Christmas Day, 92-83, snapping the Celtics’ 19-game winning streak. He capped off the week going 10-for-10 from the free throw line en route to scoring 31 points in a 130-113 victory over Golden State.
Other nominees for the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week were Miami’s Dwyane Wade, Orlando’s Rashard Lewis, Cleveland’s Mo Williams, Charlotte’s Gerald Wallace, Atlanta’s Joe Johnson, Detroit’s Rodney Stuckey, Houston’s Yao Ming, Oklahoma City’s Kevin Durant, San Antonio’s Tony Parker and Toronto’s Jermaine O’Neal.
Cavaliers cool off Heat 93-86
The AP reports: LeBron James scored 33 points—four more than his good buddy Dwyane Wade—and took on the challenge of guarding the NBA’s leading scorer down the stretch as the Cavaliers remained the league’s only unbeaten team at home with a 93-86 win over the Miami Heat on Sunday night… Mo Williams scored 20 before fouling out and Ben Wallace had 14 rebounds for the Cavs (26-4), who won their sixth straight. In the final seconds, Wallace and Varejao played a game of volleyball over the basket, tipping missed shots repeatedly before one dropped through to seal Cleveland’s win… Miami rookie G Mario Chalmers strained his right hamstring in the fourth.
Wally Szczerbiak out one week
Cavaliers forward Wally Szczerbiak has experienced right knee contusions during the last several Cavalier games. He had an MRI at The Cleveland Clinic Friday, December 26th, which confirmed the contusions. He is expected to be out for approximately one week.
For the season, Szczerbiak is playing 19.4 minutes a game and averaging 6.6 points and 2.6 rebounds per game, on subpar 41.8% shooting.
Dec 25: Cavs 93, Wizards 89
The AP reports: Trailing by eight to woeful Washington, the Cavaliers scored 11 straight points in the final 1:33 to preserve their perfect home record with a 93-89 win Thursday night. Mo Williams scored 24 points, and LeBron James and Delonte West had 18 apiece for the Cavs, who at 15-0 are the NBA’s lone unbeaten team at home. Cleveland trailed 89-82 before storming back with three free throws by James, a 3-pointer by Williams and five more foul shots in the last 26 seconds. Antawn Jamison scored 28 points, and Mike James 26 for the Wizards, who dropped their eighth straight and continue to find new ways to lose… Overmatched because of injuries to All-Star guard Gilbert Arenas (knee) and center Brendan Haywood (wrist), Washington is off to the worst start in franchise history and has already had a coaching change before the end of the calendar year.
InsideHoops.com editor says: I thought several lousy calls greatly benefitted the Cavaliers in the final few minutes of this game. But, the Cavs were the more aggressive team in the clutch, and that always helps draw calls. Still, I thought the Wizards got slightly robbed here.
Dec 23: Cavs 99, Rockets 90
The AP reports: LeBron James scored 27 points—18 in the second half— and made one of the defining defensive plays of his career by pinning Yao Ming’s shot against the backboard in the fourth quarter as the Cavaliers remained the NBA’s only undefeated team at home with a down-and-dirty 99-90 win Tuesday night. Mo Williams scored 23 and Daniel Gibson made two big 3-pointers in the fourth quarter for the Cavaliers, who improved to 23-2 in their last 25 games and 14-0 at home… Rafer Alston scored 20 points in his first game back after missing four with a strained hamstring and Yao, who spent most of the night in foul trouble, had 19—he was 13-of-13 on free throws—for the Rockets, who had their four-game winning streak stopped. Tracy McGrady scored just four points for Houston, which was playing its fourth game in five nights.
Dec 21: Cavs 102, Thunder 91
The AP reports: LeBron James scored 31 points and Mo Williams provided the kind of scoring punch expected out of him when he was brought in to be LeBron’s sidekick as Cleveland finished a four-game road trip with a 102-91 win Sunday night over the Oklahoma City Thunder… Mo Williams, who was brought in this offseason to reinforce for LeBron in a three-team trade that also involved the Thunder, scored 20 points and Delonte West hit his first five shots and finished with 18 points against his former team. Kevin Durant scored 26 for the Thunder, who were playing for the first time since snapping a franchise-record 11-game home losing streak. Russell Westbrook added 24 points and matched his career-high with 11 assists and Jeff Green scored 16 points and grabbed 10 rebounds.
LeBron James summer extension possible
There have been about 39 million articles written about the free agent summer of 2010, featuring LeBron James and other stars who may be in need of a new contract at the time. For those out there whose current teams are hopeless and must dream of a brighter future, there’s a minor update worth knowing about. The Cleveland Plain Dealer (Brian Windhorst) reports:
Cavs fans of course want to keep LeBron forever, and the sooner he signs as long a contract as possible, the better. All other fans hope it doesn’t happen, keeping the home he joins their team in the future alive.
Keep hope alive.
Dec 19: Cavs 105, Nuggets 88
The AP reports: The showdown between Olympic teammates LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony quickly turned into more of a smackdown—and a statement. James said Cleveland’s 105-88 runaway win over the Denver Nuggets on Friday night was a shout-out to the rest of the NBA and all those doubters out there who contend the Cavaliers’ record—now 22-4—was more a testament of their soft schedule than their championship caliber… In sweeping ‘Melo’s Nuggets for the first time in his career, James had 33 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists. He was 13-of-20 from the floor. Zydrunas Ilgauskas celebrated his return to the Cavaliers lineup for the first time since Dec. 10 by making nine of 14 shots for 23 points. He had missed three games with a sprained left ankle. Delonte West added 22 points.
Dec 17: Cavs 93, Wolves 70
The AP reports: LeBron James helped the Cavaliers return to their winning ways with 32 points that sent the Timberwolves to their 11th straight loss, 93-70 on Wednesday night… “We’ve got to keep working at it. Nobody said it was going to be easy,” said Al Jefferson, who had to work for his 20 points against Cleveland’s interior defensive specialist, Ben Wallace. Mike Miller was more aggressive than he’s been for most games this season for Minnesota, finishing with 14 points and seven rebounds on 7-for-12 shooting and Kevin Ollie threw in 12 points against one of his many former teams. But Wallace and Anderson Varejao helped limit Jefferson’s damage underneath, doubling him occasionally and clogging the driving lanes to keep the Wolves from finding an offensive rhythm.